Practicing Primitive Christianity

Before the New Testament was written, much less compiled, the early Christians had to figure out what their community of faith would look like. The Didache (DID-ah-kay) is a document that gives us a glimpse into those early years before creeds (Council of Nicaea- AD 325) were written and church hierarchies and orders were put into place (Constantine- 313) and most likely before any of the Apostle Paul's letters were written.

This small document, which takes about 20 minutes to read, is broken into four parts. It is very possible that these four sections started as separate writings that were later put into one document to make it easier to share with a new follower of Jesus.

• Training in the Way of Life - a teaching on morals (very Jewish)
• The Rhythms of Community Life - including baptism, the Eucharist, fasting and praying
• Visitors Welcome - hospitality to those within and without the community
• The End is Nigh - signs towards the end of days

The document was not considered to be sacred and was not added to the cannon of the New Testament, but that does not make the contents unimportant. The writing has very little to do with theology- what to think about God; instead the focus is on how believers should live with each other.

In recent years the Didache has primarily been studied in academic circles. Author Tony Jones and Paraclete Press have partnered together to make it available again, and they have done with an interesting approach. Jones found a community of believers in Missouri that have been studying the Didache to understand the early Christians' approach to community and implementing it into their lives today.

"The Teaching of the Twelve" starts with a history lesson of the manuscript, provides the actual text, and gives background to both the early Christians who followed these guidelines as well as the believers in Missouri that emulating them. This is followed by a chapter of commentary on each of the four sections. I found the writing to be encouraging and thought provoking and certainly worth discussing in communities of faith today.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes, both from the Didache and the commentary:

2:2 You shall not murder a child, whether it be born or unborn.

2:7 Hate no one; correct some, pray for others, and some you should love more than your own life.

11:14-15 Let every apostle who comes to you be received as the Lord. But he must not remain more than one day, or two, if there is a need. If he stays three days he is a false prophet.

16:1 Watch over your life, that your lamps are never quenched, and that your loins are never unloosed.

16:2 Come together often, seeking the things that are good for your souls.

"One of the things that has struck them [the community in Missouri] about the Didache is that the intellectual study of the teaching is not what's emphasized. In fact, it's not even mentioned. Instead the focus is on living the teaching."

"If the sinner refuses refuses to abandon the unrighteous behavior, Jesus teaches, 'Let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax-collector.' While that sentence has long been used to ostercise sinners from the church, if we take a minute to think about how Jesus treated tax-collectors and sinners, it becomes clear that Jesus was not advocating excommunication but rather hospitality toward the sinner. 'Hate no one' is the guiding premise of the community; their tag line; their mission statement."

"In the Didache there is no difference between the gospel and the social gospel."

"There is a plethora of admonitions about how to treat others, but not one about preaching the word and growing the church."

"Do the best you can."